Fluid-current motor



Patented Nov. 28, 1922.

2 SPEETS' M WN M MM I ET].

D G WHITE FLUID CURRENT MOTOR. I APPLICATION FILED SEPT. 20, I92]. 1,436,843.

D. 6. WHITE. FLUID CURRENT MOTOR. APPLICATION FILED SEPT. 20, 192i- Patented Nov. 28, 1922. P, 2 Si'lEELS-SHEET a TIT wlmssss A FOR/V578 Patented Nov. 28, 1922 FLUID-CURRENT MOTOR.

Application filed September 20, 1921.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that 1, DAVID Gnosvnnon Wnrrn, a citizen of the United States, and a resident of Braddock Heights, in the coun ty of Frederick and State of Maryland, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Fluid-Current Motors, of which the following is a specification.

The present invention relates to a fluid current motor and more particularly to a water motor.

The object of the invention is to provide a motor of this character which operates t develop the maximum power from the flowing body of water in which it is immersed, which is moved in the same direction irrespective of the direction of flow of the current, which may be readily reversed without impairing its efficiency and which is in general of simple and durable construction, reliable in operation and easy and inexpensive to manufacture and maintain.

Other objects and advantages of the invention reside in certain novel features of construction, combination and arrangement of parts which will 'be hereinafter more fully described and particularly pointed out in the appended claims, reference being had to the accompanying drawings forming part of this specification, and in which:

Figure 1 is a diagrammatic view in transverse section, showing the preferred embodiment of the invention in operation in a current of water;

Figure 2 is a detail View in section on line 22 of Figure 1;

Figure 3 is a diagrammatic view in side elevation illustrating the motor when actuated by tide water flowing in one direction;

Figure 4 is a similar view; showing the motor when actuated by tide water when flowing in the opposite direction; and

Figure 5 is a view in side elevation, illustrating the invention embodied in a multiple unit system adjacent the water fall.

Referring to the drawings wherein for the sake of illustration are shown the preferred embodiments of the invention and more particularly to Figures 1 to 1 inclusive, the numeral 10 designates the foundation upon which the motor is supported, the foundation Serial No. 502,000.

being concrete and metal or of other suitable construction properly associated with the bed of the stream or body of water. Bearings 11 are arranged on the foundations and in these bearings is journaled a rotatable shaft 1 1-. The shaft is provided adjacent the bearings with collars 15 and a disk or side plate 16 is arranged on the shaft 14 adjacent and abutting each collar 15. Nuts 17 are threaded on the shaft and coact with the collars 15 to maintain the side plates in proper position. The rotatable shaft and the side plates when thus assembled constitute a rotatable support.

A plurality of concentric circular series of fixed shafts extend between and are secured to the disk or side plates, the innermost series of fixed shafts being designated at 20, the two intermediate series being designated at 21 and 22, respectively, and the outer series being designated at 23. Each fixed shaft has one end threaded into one of the side plates and has the other end headed and engaging the other side plate, as shown in Figure 2.

A series of swinging vanes is carried by each series of fixed shafts, there being one swinging vane mounted on each fixed shaft and the inner series of swinging vanes being designated at 24, the two intermediate series being designated at 25 and 26, respectively, the outer series being designated at 27. All of the swinging vanes are of similar construction except that they are of progressively increasing size from the center toward the periphery of the side plates, the inner series 24- being smallest, the outer series 2'? being largest and the two intermediate series being of graduated sizes between the sizes of the inner and outer series. The swinging vanes all comprise a sleeve or bearing portion, designated at 28, 29,30 and 31, respectively, and an imperforate body portion preferably of rectangular form and designated at 32, 33, 3 1 and 35, respectively.

A series of abutment rods is provided for each series of swinging vanes and includes an inner series of abutment rods, designated at 36, intermediate series designated at 37 and 38, respectively, and an outer series designated at 39. All of the abutment rods extend between and are secured to the side plates 16. The abutment rods 36 coact with the inner series of swinging vanes 24, the abutment rods 37 coact with the intermediate series of swinging vanes 25, the abutment rods 38 coact with the other intermediate series of swinging vanes 26 and the abutment rods 39 coact with the outer series of swinging vanes 27. The abutment rods 36 lie between the shafts 20 and the rotatable shaft 14 that is they lie between the axis of rotation of the motor and the axis of swing of the series of vanes 534i, and these abutment rods 36 also extend parallel. to and are radially alined with the shafts 20 or axes of swing of the series of vanes 24:. The abutment rods 37, 38 and 89 are similarly related to the shafts 21 and vanes 25, shafts E22 and vanes 26 and the shafts 9,3 and vanes 27, respectively. In this manner the vanes of the series are engageable with the abutment rods from either side to provide for ready reversal of the motor and to provide for the development of maximum power since the axis of swing of the vanes are dis posed at a point farthest from the center for any given arrangement.

Referring to Figure 1 it will. be seen that the ,series of vanes are so placed as to provide a slight clearance bet reen the vanes of adjacent series, the path described by the outermost point of the vanes of each series being indicated by dot and dash lines.

Each series of associated fixed shafts, swinging vanes and abutment rods together constitute a series of power elements which are highly organized and coact to efficiently produce a maximum degree of power. clearly shown in Figure 1, the inner series of power elements which includes the fixed shafts 20 and swinging vanes 24 is radially alined with the intermediate series of power elements which includes the fixed shafts 22 and swinging vanes 26 and the other series of power elements which includes the fixed shafts 23 and swinging vanes 27 radially alined with the other intermediate series of power elements which includes the fixed shaft 21 and swinging vanes 25, the last mentioned two radially alined series being staggered with respect to the first mentioned two radially alined series. In general, alter-- nate series of power elements are radially alined and intermediate series also radially alined but are staggered with respect to the alternate series.

Referrin especiallyto Figure 1 it will be seen that w en the current flows as indicated by the horizontal arrows, the wheel is rotated as indicated by the arrow adjacent the periphery of the side plate. At this time all of the vanes of the upper half of the wheel are effective to a greater or lesser degree to receive an impulse from the current, the upper half thus constituting the active area or zone of the motor, and the vanes in the lower half of the Wheel are feathered. and

present a minimum resistance to the flow of the current between them. The vanes of the active zone or area of the wheel are so staggered and arranged that none of the water of the current is trapped or pocketed so as to become inert and ineffective in developing power but on the contrary all of the current is constrained to exert an impulse against the vanes. Considering the action of the vanes in the active zone, it will be seen that at the right-hand side of Figure 1, the vanes are so angled with respect to the direction of flow of the current that only a component of the force incident to the flow of the current is effectively exerted as an impulse against these angled vanes but at the same time these angled vanes do not carry the flow of the main body of the water which continues to travel through the wheel until it strikes the vanes adjacent that center of the figure which lies squarely at right angles with respect to the direction of flow of the current in which position they receive the maximum impulse from the current. From the center to the extreme left of this figure, the vanes are so angled as to receive a gradually decreasing impulse from the current. In this manner there is obtained the effect of continuously presented solid wall or vane to the flow of the current without the disadvantage of trapping or pocketing any water so as to render it inert and cause it to impair the efficiency of the machine.

Nhen the apparatus is in operation, the vanes which enter the active zone occupy a position a very slight angle to the axis of flow of the current and as they travel through the active zone this angle successively increases as may be seen from an inspection of Figure 1. When the vanes leave the active zone they are flipped over into feathering position by the current.

The direction of rotation of the motor may be reversed irrespective of the direction of the flow of the current by simply turning the wheel through 180 which causes the vanes to swing around and engage the abutment rods from the opposite sides. For instance if it is desired to reverse the direction of rotation of the wheel or motor shown in Figure 1, the rotatable shaft is turned by any suitable means such as an electric motor, hand-operated reduction gearing or the like to turn the motor through 180 in a clockwise direction against the flow of the current. When this is done the vanes which are feathering in the lower half of the wheel enter the active zone at the left of the figure in inactive or feathering position while those vanes which leave the active zone in the right of the figure are also maintained in feathering position by the current until the motor has been turned through 180 and at this time vanes which have traversed the active Zone or upper half of the wheel in feathering position then enter the lower half of the wheel supported by the abutment rods in which event the active zone is shifted from the upper half of the wheel to the lower half of the wheel and the direction of rotation of the motor is thus reversed.

In Figure -1 the motor is shown as being rotated in a counterclocl-iwise direction when the tide flows, as indicated by the arrow. When the direction of iiow of the tide changes the motor is still rotated in the same direction as the vanes are automatically shifted by the current to effect this result, as shown in Figure 3.

.Vhen the tide is flowing as shown in Figure I, the operation is precisely the same as that described in conjunction with Figure 1. Shortly before the tide changes, the rotation of the water wheel or motor gradually decreases so that when the flow in the direction of the arrow in Figure a stops some of the vanes leave the active zone or upper half of the wheel and enter the feathering zone supported on top of the abutment rods since there is no flow of current to flip them over into feathering position. Then when the tide changes and the how starts in the opposite direction, the active zone is shifted to the lower half of the wheel or motor since the vanes that are supported on the abutment rods as shown in dotted lines in Figure 3 receive the impulses from the current while the vanes in the upper half of the wheel or motor are free to feather and are feathered by the action of the current.

In Figure 5 the invention is shown as embodied in a multiple unit system which may include a series of motors, designated at 40, ll and 4-2 which are arranged in the stream with their axis parallel and extending transverse to the direction of flow of the current. The motor etl is set in the same manner as the motor shown in Figure 1 and operates in precisely the same manner as described in conjunction with this figure and the motors a0 and 42 are set with their swinging vanes reversed with respect to the vanes of the motor 41. In this manner the motor 42 utilizes the lower strata of water to operate it and does not obstruct the fiow of the upper strata to any degree, leaving this upper strata to flow unimpeded and actuate the motor 41. The motor is sufficiently remote from the motor 42 to permit the lower strata to regain its momentum and body and it utilizes this lower strata to actuate it. It is obvious that by placing two motors adjacent each other and setting them as the motors 40 and 42 are set that the necessity of utilizing reversing mechanism is dispensed with.

I claim:

1. In an apparatus of the character described, a plurality of concentric circular series of swinging vanes, alternate series of vanes being radially alined, intermediate series being radially alined and being staggered with respect to the alternate series, and a series of abutments for each series of swinging vanes.

2. In an apparatus of the character described, a series of swinging vanes, each vane being mounted so as to be freely rotatable through a substantially complete revolution, and each vane being so disposed with respect to adjacent vanes as to be clear of such adjacent vanes in all phases of its movement and irrespective of the phase or position of such adjacent vane, and a series of abutments for said series of swinging vanes, each abutment being so disposed as to be cooperable with its swinging vane from either side.

3. In an apparatus of the character described, a rotatable support, a swinging vane carried thereby and mounted so as to be freely rotatable through a substantially complete revolution, and an abutment for said swinging vane radially alined with the axis of swing of said vane and disposed to be engageable with. said vane from either side.

4. In an apparatus of the character described, a rotatable support, a series of swinging vanes carried by said support, and a series of abutments cooperable with said supports, the abutments being alined with and arranged between the axis of rotation of said support and the axes of swing of said vanes and being disposed so as to be cooperable with said vanes from either side.

5. In an apparatus of the character de scribed, a plurality of concentric circular series of swinging vanes, the vanes of alternate series being radially alined, the vanes of intermediate series being also radially alined and being staggered with respect to the vanes of the alternate series, each vane being mounted so as to be freely rotatable through a substantially complete revolution and each vane being so disposed with respect to adjacent vanes as to be clear of such adj acent vanes in all phases of its movements and irrespective of the phases or positions of such adjacent vanes and a series of abutments for each series of swinging vanes, each abutment being individually cooperable with its swinging vane and being so disposed as to be cooperable with its swinging vane from either side.

DAVID GROSVENOR WHITE. 

